Allianz: Boomers Now Less Likely to Receive Inheritance From Parents

Parents of baby boomers are growing increasingly unwilling to leave behind an inheritance for their children, opting instead to save money for healthcare costs or to enjoy themselves in old age, an Allianz study finds.

Only 14 percent of baby boomers’ parents believe they owe their children an inheritance, Allianz found, according to Money Magazine. In 2005, 22 percent of parents felt this way.

“Culturally, the idea of a legacy has disappeared for all but the very wealthy,” said Hendrik Hartog, author of "Someday All This Will Be Yours," Money reports.

Many Americans are finding it difficult just to plan for retirement let alone plan for leaving money behind for their children.

A June Gallup poll found that 57 percent of investing Americans feel they have little or no control over their efforts to build and maintain their retirement savings in the current environment.

The figure remains basically unchanged from 58 percent feeling likewise in February, but down from 65 percent in September 2011, when the U.S. debt-ceiling debacle nearly threw the country into default.

Thirty percent say they have quite a lot of control, and 13 percent say they have a great deal of control.

“Even as the May swoon on Wall Street was getting underway and the financial crisis in Europe was becoming more of an issue for the global economy, 57 percent of investors felt they had little or no control over building and maintaining their retirement savings,” Gallup said.

“Further, 28 percent said their control over their retirement savings had decreased over the past six months. Little wonder why only 48 percent of investors in the most recent investor poll say now is a good time to invest in the financial markets, compared with 62 percent in February of last year.”